From the soft tinkle of colorful bangles on your beautiful hands, the merging of paints that adorn your doorways in Diwali with Rangoli, to the splash of water on Holi, there are colours everywhere.
From the bright patchy quilt to the red chili pickle your mom made for you, there are colours everywhere.
Colours bind us, colours bring us closer and colours are the only language that is common to us. Our beloved country is composed of thousand hues that make it what it is!
Come, let us take a look how colourful Incredible India is:
The festival of colour – Holi
Colours fill the atmosphere as people throw gulal in the air showing great joy and mirth as the festival arrives. Holi is India’s favorite festival and why not, when we get a whole day to play with colors and forget the rest of the world.
Vrindavan celebrate Holi to the maximum extent. On the banks of Yamuna in the holy land of Lord Krishna, the festival couldn’t get better. This is that one day of the year when every individual in the country rejoices regardless of caste, creed and gender.
Colourful Cities
Indian cities have some colorful nicknames and have a history too. There’s a White City (Udaipur), an Orange City (Nagpur), a Pink City (Jaipur), a Golden City (Jaisalmer) and Jodhpur – the Blue City in the western desert state of Rajasthan.
These nicknames arise from the distinctive architectural features each city carries.
Coral Reefs of Lakshadweep
Marooned by the Arabian Sea from the rest of India, the Lakshwadweep Islands on the west of the Malabar Coast sits pretty with its hidden treasures of natural beauty.
Lakshwadweep, which means a hundred thousand islands, consists of a group of beautiful islands surrounded by breathtaking landscapes. The beauty is enhanced by the presence of the Reefs in Lakshwadweep.
Most of the Islands are naturally decorated by white coral sands and large coral boulders. A walk along the coral reefs will bring you closer to some live coral reefs. A vast 4,200 sq kms of pristine archipelago lagoons, unspoiled coral reefs are safely preserved by Mother Nature in the warm waters.
The lights of spiritual shrines in Varanasi
Resting on the banks of the Holy Ganga River, the Ghats of Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh are places of worship of all kinds.
The most colourful and famous amongst all is the Dashashwamedh Ghat, where puja is performed to worship Lord Shiva. Young priests dressed in red, yellow and white hold up huge ‘Aartis’ and incense sticks to worship the deity with marigolds and other flowers.
A riot of colours here is sure to bring out a feeling of immense devotion.
The French Colonies of Puducherry
India’s colonial past has left a permanent mark in the form of their colonies in India. However, they are now part of India. Puducherry’s refreshing colonial French architecture gives us a hint of French and European lifestyle.
The beautiful cobbled streets, which line the older part of the town, are a heaven for the calm and solitude seeking traveller. The long doors and the high roofs with subtle colored walls or the cobbled streets of Puducherry carry the bohemian charm which is just a perfect scenic site.
Festival of Light – Diwali
One of the most significant festivals in Indian culture, Diwali, the festival of lights, sees millions attend firework displays, prayers and celebratory events across the world every autumn.
The festival is marked by four days of celebration, which literally illumines the country with its brilliance, and dazzles all with its joy. The illumination of homes with lights and the skies with firecrackers is an expression of obeisance to the heavens for the attainment of health, wealth, knowledge, peace and prosperity.
The colourful rides on Indian Lakes
India is blessed with numerous picturesque locations. One such beautiful gift are the lakes which are enhanced with decorated shikaras or boats.
Be it a ride on Dal Lake in Srinagar or on Naini Lake in Uttarakhand or on the back waters in God’s own country Kerala, riding in the calm waters amidst the snow-capped mountains or glittery hills are a bliss.
Bangles and more
Everywhere else you will see colours, but in the market of bangles, you will hear it!
If you are in Hyderabad, a visit to the Laad bazaar is a must. The glimpse of the sparkling bangles and the tinkling music they make is a sound that you are not likely to forget.
The brightly lit market around the four corners of Charminar is a feast to the eyes. To add to this, the hums of ‘Qawwali’ from a distant mosque, lends a feeling of immense peace to the entire scenario. It seems as if the bangles are in sync with the hums.